Choices
by Karen-Charlene
Summary: Catherine decides to loosen up a bit and have some fun until reality comes crashing down on her and she has to make a serious choice.
1. A Night Outside of Home

**Disclaimer: I don't own CSI nor the characters.**

**Rating: M**

**A/N: I wrote this story a long time ago, but it was mainly a story for the drawer. I never thought of posting it, but eventually I decided to post it for Christa (Noa-Pearl). Hope you like it, hon (:  
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* * *

**A Night Outside of Home**

Catherine Willows stood in front of the mirror in the hallway and added the last touches of make-up to her face, ready to go to the Las Vegas Police Department annual Christmas party she and her husband had been invited to. She was wearing a little black dress that revealed just enough, but not too much – she knew how possessive and protective her husband could get sometimes and she wasn't in the mood for arguing – and her strawberry-blonde hair was down on her shoulders in soft curls.

"Eddie, you coming?" she called as she placed the bottle of pink lip-gloss in her little black purse and put on her black stiletto shoes. "We're gonna be late."

Just as she finished her sentence, her husband walked into the hallway with a dozy grin on his face. She took in his attire: White boxer briefs and socks. Santa wouldn't be too pleased.

"Why aren't you dressed?" she asked, feeling her temper rising at the possible upcoming argument.

"Why are you?" Eddie replied and his grin grew bigger as he walked over to her, wrapped his arms around her waist, and started peppering her exposed, slender neck with kisses.

"Eddie, stop, we're gonna be late." She placed her hands on his chest in an attempt to push him away and turned her head to the side so he wouldn't have access to her neck.

Putting his hand in front of her face to stop her from talking, Eddie stated, "Wait here," before turning on his heels and disappearing into their bedroom. Catherine watched his retreating form with an impatient expression and a hand planted on her hip. He returned a few seconds later, holding a small plastic bag, which contained a white powder that Catherine recognized immediately.

"Look what I got for us," he said with a grin, dangling the small bag in front of her face. "Some snow for Christmas," he added with a wink."

Catherine closed her eyes and sighed before opening them again. "Eddie, you know I don't do this anymore. And you promised me you'd stop, too."

"I will. But not today," he said, wrapping his arms around her again. "Why don't we skip this stupid event, stay here, and get high?" he suggested huskily with a gleam in his eye.

Catherine knew that it was pointless to argue and, truth be told, she was past caring. "You can get high," she stated. "I'm leaving." Turning on her heels, she left him behind as she walked out of the front door and slammed it shut behind her.

When she arrived at the party, she was no longer in the mood for celebrating. She wondered how it was possible that Eddie could always find a way to ruin her mood. Settling on a stool by the bar, she ordered a glass of red wine and turned in her stool to watch everyone dancing and having a good time.

"Where's your husband?" she suddenly heard someone whisper into her ear from behind, his hot breath hitting her neck and sending shivers up her spine. She smiled as the man, who was causing her this feeling, walked around to face her.

"I left him at home."

"Why? He didn't behave?" Lou Vartann grinned at her as he settled on a stool next to her and ordered himself a bottle of beer.

Catherine chuckled in response. "Something like that."

Smiling, Lou grabbed the bottle of beer the bartender set in front of him on the bar, took a sip, and looked around at all the people from the department. When he was sure no one was listening, he leaned a bit closer to Catherine and whispered, "You coming to mine later?"

Catherine smiled at the low tone of his voice and felt the familiar shiver of excitement he always gave her coursing throughout her body and finally settling between her thighs. She took another sip of her wine before replying, "I'd love to."

With a satisfied smile, Lou leaned back against the bar and watched with amusement in his eyes as she slowly empties her glass. By the way she was downing the wine without even stopping to take a breath, he could see that she had already been upset before she got there and he had a feeling that it had to do with her husband. The corner of his lips twitched up in a half smile as he made a mental note to make it up to her later.

* * *

As soon as his front door closed, Lou pinned Catherine against it, and before she had a chance to take a breath, he claimed her mouth with his in a passionate kiss, both already kicking their shoes off. Catherine wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pulling him closer and deepening the kiss, and when his tongue gently parted her lips and sneaked into her mouth, she moaned softly into the kiss.

Taking her hands in his, Lou gently pinned them above her head as his tongue continued mingling with hers. At first she struggled to free them, desperate to touch and feel him, but slowly her fingers curled around his hands in surrender and, finding another way to feel closer to him, she arched her back against him, pressing her body further against his.

While holding her hands up with one hand, Lou's other hand wandered down Catherine's side, causing a shiver of excitement to run throughout her whole body at the feeling of his fingers against her thin dress. When his hand reached the hem of her dress, Lou started pulling the garment upwards slowly, each time revealing more of the creamy skin of her leg and pressing his fingers gently, yet with sheer force to the burning skin.

Finally letting go of her hands, he pulled the black material over Catherine's head, leaving her in black, lacy, matching bra and panties. He was too busy ogling her marvelous body that it took him a few seconds to realize she was trying to push his jacket off his body. When he did, however, he nothing but shoved the piece of clothing off his body and tossed it on the floor before he wrapped his arms around her slim waist and, peppering her neck with kisses, pulled her out of the hallway and in the direction of the bedroom.

He kicked the door shut behind them and pushed her back onto the bed, causing her to squeal with surprise and laugh at the same time. She quickly got under the covers and watched as he got rid of his clothes as fast as he could, remaining in only his black, tight boxers. A sultry smile formed on her lips at the sight of the ever growing bulge inside his boxers and she licked her suddenly dry lips as he crawled onto the bed and settled on top of her under the covers. Their lips met once again in a passionate kiss – lips caressing and tongues battling for dominance.

As Lou ground his bulge against Catherine's center through their underwear, a gasp escaped her lips, being muffled by his lips on hers, and she arched into his body, silently allowing him to reach behind her back and struggle with the clasp on her bra. A few seconds later Lou felt her lips curl against his and heard a quiet chuckle leaving her lips.

Breaking the kiss, he lifted his head and studied her amused face. "What?"

"Having fun there, Detective?" she asked with an amused tone to her voice.

"These things shouldn't be this hard to open," he muttered, fumbling with the clasp.

"It's really not that hard," Catherine stated.

"It's hard for me."

"After all this time, I thought you'd know how to open my bra."

"Yes!" he exclaimed as he finally managed to get the clasp open, earning a hearty laugh from his lover – his favorite laugh. Looking down at her radiant face, he couldn't help but smile as well. He couldn't believe it was possible not to fall in love with this woman, especially when she was laughing. He felt like the luckiest man in the world to have her in his bed.

He pulled the lacy garment from her body, freeing her perfect breasts, and tossed it to the side. Leaning down, his lips latched onto her left nipple and started sucking and nibbling, causing the laugh to be replaced by a throaty moan from the goddess beneath him. When the nipple had been properly teased and was hard enough in his mouth, he gently tugged on it with his teeth and moved on to the other one, granting it the same attention.

When he was done, he started trailing kisses down Catherine's body – taking the time to touch, tease, and taste every inch of her soft, freckled skin – until he reached the straps of her lacy panties and, hooking his fingers into them, slowly pulled them down her legs, following the path with his lips and tongue. When the panties were finally off, he tossed them somewhere in the dark room before kissing his way back up her long legs, causing her to let out soft sighs and purrs every now and then. Her hips bucked against his head as he kissed her inner thigh, bit it gently, and then soothed the place with his tongue, and she was getting wetter as he kissed his way to the place she craved him the most. She groaned in displeasure as he skipped her center and repeated the same motion on her other thigh. When he's had enough, he kissed his way back up her body until he finally reached her mouth and kissed her deeply without a notice, causing her to let out a small whimper against his lips.

Catherine smiled up at him as she took the waistband of his boxers in her hands and pulled his them down his legs, freeing his painfully hard erection and allowing him to kick the black undergarment off his ankles. He pecked her lips once more before stretching his body over hers, reaching for the drawer on his nightstand, and pulling out a wrapped condom. He was just about to open the wrapper when Catherine snatched it from his hands and tore it open with her teeth. She knew it really wasn't necessary, but she was also aware of the reactions it always caused in his body, and looking into his now dark eyes burning with desire, she knew she was doing it right.

Lou was more than glad when she offered to help with the condom and he couldn't help the erotic sounds erupting from his throat at the feeling of her nails gently scraping along his shaft until it was fully sheathed in the latex.

They looked into each other's eyes – desire and passion burning in them – as Lou slowly slipped into Catherine's hot, wet opening with a groan. Catherine closed her eyes with a satisfied moan and tilted her head back into the pillow, granting Lou full access to her throat. He dragged his lips and tongue up the soft skin and kissed his way down – repeating the same motion over and over again as he started slowly thrusting in and out of her, her hips moving in rhythm with his as best as they could.

As he moved slowly within her warm walls, Catherine wrapped her legs around his waist and dug her nails into the flesh of his back, pulling his naked body tighter to hers, delighted to feel his warm skin moving against hers. He felt so good, moving against her, inside her.

Nevertheless, the slow pace was eventually driving her crazy and, wrapping one arm around his strong back while placing the other one on the back of his head, she rolled them over until he was lying on his back beneath her.

Lou looked up at her as she slowly sat up and placed her hands on his chest. Grabbing her hips, he guided her body up and down his shaft, eliciting moans of pleasure from her lips. She was so gorgeous; her eyes were half closed and her lips parted slightly, her cheeks red from arousal, her strawberry-blonde hair stuck to her back and face from the sweat, her back arched, and her breasts bouncing with the movements of her body. All Lou could think about was how beautiful she looked; she always looked beautiful when they made love.

He wanted to give her the ultimate pleasure, so with that in mind, he gripped her hips tighter and started thrusting up into her. Catherine's moans grew louder as he hit her G-spot with every thrust and her pace quickened as both started racing toward release.

Catherine reached hers first, arching her back even more and crying out Lou's name as her walls clamped down around his member and her hot juices showered it. Her body was still trembling slightly as Lou thrust up into her a couple more times before reaching his own climax with a loud groan, his hands tightening around her hips and his brows furrowing. Catherine collapsed onto his chest and he wrapped her small body in his arms as both lay in silence and tried to catch their breath.

"Wow," Lou was the first one to breathe out after a few minutes of silence, earning a small chuckle from Catherine.

"You can say that again."

"Wow!"

Another chuckle.

She slowly raised her head and saw him smiling at her. She felt her heart melting; his smile was the most beautiful thing she has ever seen.

"Merry Christmas," Lou said, tucking a strand of sweaty hair behind her ear and earning the giggle he loved hearing so much. "I'll be right back," he added a few seconds later before placing the strawberry-blonde on the bed and slipping out of it.

Catherine watched his retreating form with a smile as he disappeared into the en suite. Flopping back on the bed, she pulled the white blanket up to her chest and stared up at the ceiling, the smile slowly fading.

What were they doing? What was _she_ doing? She was married, for God's sake, and yet she and Lou had been seeing each other for two months now. She was cheating on her husband, and yet it didn't feel so wrong. But why would it? He was constantly cheating on her; he preferred his work and cocaine over her; he barely noted her presence in his life if he didn't need something from her. So why wasn't she allowed to have some fun?

When Lou returned from the en suite, he was no longer wearing the condom and Catherine laughed as she watched him strike a pose in front of the bed. Completely naked, he flexed his strong muscles, looking – or at least trying to look – as though he had just stepped out of a poster. Catherine's laugh grew louder and all thoughts of Eddie immediately disappearing from her head.

"Come here, sexy," she said sultrily while pulling the blanket off her body and allowing Lou to crawl on top of her before draping the blanket over their bodies. They shared a long, sweet kiss before Lou pulled away and looked at her face.

"Do you have to go home right away?" he asked.

"Well, Ed's probably still high right now," she replied, "so I don't think he'll notice if I don't come home."

A satisfied smile formed on Lou's lips at her answer and he pecked her lips once more before rolling off of her and lying on his back while pulling her to rest against his side. Catherine rested her arms on his chest and rested her head on them, watching his face as he lay in silence. She studied every inch of his face; every line and every muscle that was relaxing as he slowly closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. Settling comfortably against his side, Catherine pressed a soft kiss to his shoulder before resting her head on it and drifting to sleep as well.

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**So, I know the first chapter might be a little confusing, but the next one will make everything clear in your heads.**

**It was actually supposed to be a one-shot, but it was too long so I decided to cut it to a few chapters.**

**-Zohar**


	2. Memories

**Disclaimer in chapter 1.**

**A/N: Wow, it's been almost a month since I last updated any of my stories! I'm actually ashamed. So in order to make up for it, I wrote a long chapter for you.  
Enjoy!**

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**Memories**

_Catherine stopped at a red light and, with a smile on her face, turned her head to look at the passenger's seat, where a few well-covered boxes full of food sat patiently._

_It was her and her husband's fifth anniversary and they had been planning to go out for dinner to celebrate a fifth year of their successful marriage. Eddie had promised to take Catherine to her favorite restaurant and she had been anticipating this night for weeks. However, only a couple of hours before they were supposed to go out, Eddie had called from his office to say that he would be stuck at work for a few more hours and couldn't make it. Despite his constant apologies, Catherine couldn't help but sound upset and disappointed._

_Still dressed in her new dress, which she had bought especially for this occasion, she had sat down by the breakfast bar in the house she and her husband shared and nonchalantly flipped through the brochures lay before her. When the advertisement for the restaurant she and Eddie had been supposed to dine at had caught her eyes, she'd straightened up in her seat and a smile had slowly spread on her lips._

_Sitting in her car now and waiting for the red light to change, she wondered if her husband would like the surprise she had made for him. She had called the restaurant and ordered the meals she and Eddie usually had and decided that if her husband couldn't come and celebrate their honeymoon with her, she would bring the honeymoon to him. He had been working so hard for the past couple of weeks; always doing extra hours and staying in the office until late. It would be good for him to take a break for an hour or so, Catherine decided._

_Parking her car outside the building Eddie worked in, she climbed out and straightened the silky material of her red dress before walking around to the passenger side and pulling out the still warm boxes of food._

_A confident smile was plastered on her face as her heels clicked on the wooden floor of the corridors on her way to her husband's office. She couldn't wait to see his reaction when she'd show up in his doorway with dinner. Nevertheless, nothing could prepare her for her own reaction as she opened his office door after knocking lightly._

_There, on her husband's usually full of files and discs desk, sat a naked woman, who Catherine recognized as Eddie's secretary. Her hair was dyed blonde, not a single curve or line was visible on her body, and she looked around the age of 20. But the thing that caused Catherine's mouth to form an O shape and her eyes to widen was the man moving vigorously between the young girl's legs, causing her to moan and pant his name; the name that, until that moment, Catherine had been sure she was the only one with the privilege to moan._

_When the boxes she was holding almost slipped from Catherine's now sweaty hands, she came back to her senses and, gripping them tighter – almost piercing them with her manicured nails – she turned on her heels and retreated from the office as quickly as she could._

_On her way back to the elevator, she discarded to food boxes in one of the bins she passed by without looking; the tears filling her eyes made it nearly impossible to see anything clearly anyway. But she wouldn't let them out. She wouldn't cry. No, she wouldn't give him the power._

_An hour later, she was sitting in a pub and downing her third glass of whiskey. Her black mascara and eyeliner were now smeared below her eyes, the confident smile was long gone from her face, and she focused on feeling the burning sensation of the alcoholic liquid sliding down her throat and settling in her stomach, creating a warm feeling in her cold body. She didn't want to feel anything else: she didn't want to feel hurt or sad; she didn't want to feel betrayed or hatred. She just didn't want to feel._

_"Catherine?" A voice behind her, accompanied by a big hand on her shoulder, pulled her out of her deep thoughts and caused her to jump around in her stool to meet a pair of bright green-grey eyes._

_"De…" she started only to find her voice hoarse from drinking and crying. Coughing a couple of times to clear her voice, she repeated, "Detective."_

_The man wearing suit wordlessly removed his hand from her shoulder and took the seat next to her. Her sad blue eyes followed him as he turned to the bartender and ordered himself a beer. Taking the opportunity to order herself another drink while the bartender was still there, Catherine pointed into her now empty glass, wordlessly asking for a re-fill, to which the bartender nodded before taking away her glass._

_When both were left alone, she finally turned to her co-worker with curious eyes. "What are you doing here?" she questioned._

_"I come here every weekend," Lou replied with a small smile. "Part of the bachelor life is not having anyone to spend the weekend with," he added as the bartender returned with the ordered drinks and placed them before the couple on the bar._

_Catherine studied her co-worker with compassion in her eyes as he raised his beer bottle and took a few sips. She watched as his eyes closed the moment his lips made contact with the bottle – creating a few lines on his forehead – and as the liquid slid down his throat. However, she quickly turned to look over his shoulder when he lowered the bottle onto the bar, not wanting him to catch her staring at him._

_"What about you?" he finally asked, causing her eyes to return to his with a questioning expression. "Don't you have a husband at home?" he added._

_Lowering her head, Catherine chuckled bitterly to herself before turning back to the bar and grabbing her own glass of alcohol. She raised it to her lips and took a sip, letting the liquid quickly slide down her throat and enjoying the returning warm sensation in her stomach. She closed her eyes and winced as she placed the glass back down on the bar and then turned back to her co-worker with a smile._

_"My husband is cheating on me," she confessed with a playful smile, letting the alcohol in her blood speak for her. She couldn't help but chuckle when she saw Lou raising his eyebrows._

_"I'm sorry," he said quietly._

_"Sorry for what? You did nothing wrong." Content to feel the burning sensation in her throat again, she grabbed her glass and took another, bigger sip. Lowering it onto the bar, she winced again before turning back to Lou._

_"It's our anniversary today," she said. She was trying to sound serious, but her drunken state was causing her words to come out slurred and she looked as though she would burst out laughing every moment. And that was exactly what happened a few seconds later. Her normally hearty, contagious laugh came out sad and bitter this time, but still made every word she said sound like she was telling a joke, and in her drunken state, she really did believe it was all a joke; a cruel, sad joke._

_"Can you imagine?" she said louder than she'd intended, the laugher increasing and causing Lou to feel slightly uncomfortable with the situation. "It's our anniversary and I caught him cheating on me!"_

_Before she could raise her glass back up to her lips, Lou grabbed it, gently trying to pull it out of her hand. "Hey, Catherine, maybe you should calm down with the alcohol," he suggested. She, however, was having none of it and continued with her story._

_"He called and told me he had to work late; 'I'm sorry Catherine,'" she mimicked her husband with a low tone to her voice. "'Something came up and I have to stay in the office. I'm so sorry.' So I thought, 'Oh, poor husband; he has to work late on his anniversary. You know what? I'll come visit him with dinner so he won't feel alone.'" Finishing with a huff and a scoffing expression, she raised the glass to her lips and downed the remaining of her drink before continuing, "Only my dear husband made me a bigger surprise: I walk into his office and I see him fucking his 12-year-old secretary!" she exclaimed, placing her glass on the bar with a bang and causing Lou to jump in his seat._

_"I'm really sorry, Catherine," was all Lou could offer again in a calm voice. He had no idea how to react and what to say in this kind of situation, mostly because he was surprised. During work, Catherine always seemed so tough and strong; so confident and independent. That was the Catherine he always admired. The Catherine he saw now was nothing like the strong, tough woman who would collect evidence from a dead body or question a suspect without even blinking. The Catherine he saw now was vulnerable and sad, and it scared him._

_He was a little startled when she turned her head sharply in his direction and he felt a little bit uncomfortable under her investigative gaze until she finally opened her mouth. "Are you married, Detective?" she questioned, squinting her eyes._

_Now he felt even more uncomfortable. Coughing, he took a small sip of his beer before answering, "No, I'm not," even though he had mentioned the fact he was a bachelor earlier, but he knew that he couldn't count on her memory after four glasses of whiskey._

_"I'm jealous," Catherine murmured bitterly. She turned back to her glass only to furrow her brows as she found it empty. It took her a few moments to realize she had drunk all the contents, but when realization finally dawned on her, she looked up and signaled with her hand for the bartender to come over._

_"Catherine, I think you've drunk enough," Lou said, reaching for her outstretched hand and trying to lower it, only to have her shrugging his hand off._

_"What are you, my father?" she replied bitterly._

_"Come on, I'll get you a cab." This statement caught Catherine's attention and she lowered her hand and turned to face the detective, scooting closer to him; a little bit too close in Lou's opinion. It didn't bother him in a bad way, but he felt his body heating up at the closeness and the feeling of her hot breath blowing on his skin, and that wasn't a good thing._

_"Can we go back to your place?" she asked quietly, her eyes pleading with his._

_A small smile appeared on Lou's lips and he let out a nervous chuckle. "Catherine, you're drunk," he said while placing a hand on her shoulder and gently trying to push her away. "And you're married."_

_"So?" she asked flirtatiously with a playful smile while scooting even closer to the man and placing her hand a bit too high on his thigh. "If my husband can go and fuck every teenager he sees, why can't I?"_

_Lou had to take in a sharp breath to keep himself from groaning as Catherine's fingers started dancing on his thigh, slowly sliding closer to his crotch. He coughed a couple of times to clear his voice before answering, "Because you're better than him."_

_"Hmm… no, I'm really not," Catherine hummed with the same flirtatious smile, her lips getting closer and closer to his and her warm breath on his skin causing shivers of arousal to course through his body._

_Sliding her hand onto the ever growing bulge in Lou's trousers, she gently took hold of it, feeling it harden even more under her touch. She smirked as she moved her face closer to his until her lips made the lightest contact with his ear and she whispered huskily, "Take me to your place, Detective."_

* * *

Catherine was pulled out of her peaceful sleep by the sound of her ringing phone. Slowly fluttering her eyes open, she looked out of the window in front of her to see the bright Las Vegas sun shining outside the room. She squinted her eyes at the offending light and lightly skimmed her hand over the surface below her, only to feel the few hairs on the chest she loved so much. Tearing her gaze from the window, she raised her hand and smiled at the sight of Lou's face. He always looked so peaceful when he slept; something she never got to see when they worked together. But then again, a stressful and serious job requires a stressful and serious face.

She remembered the morning after their first night together. She had woken up with a pounding head and nausea. It took her great effort to open her eyes, only to realize she wasn't in her bedroom, she wasn't in her bed, and worst of all: she was naked under the dark sheets. Quickly turning the wheels in her head, she tried her hardest to remember the events from the night before, but only quick images flashed through her mind: her husband having sex with his secretary on his desk, a glass of whiskey in her hand, a door being slammed and her being pinned to it, a condom wrapper…

Her eyes widened as she slowly started remembering and she turned her head sharply to see her co-worker sleeping peacefully beside her. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest and the nausea increasing. However, when she saw his calm, peaceful face, all worry and guilt disappeared from her throbbing head and for a moment, she forgot everything and concentrated on studying the naked man's face.

Even though she knew she had done something very wrong and even though she knew she was supposed to feel guilty, something about the man's face caused her to relax and even feel a little bit good about what she had done with him the previous night.

The memory of her walking into her husband's office and catching him having sex with another woman slowly came back and the unbearable sting returned to her heart. If he could, why couldn't she? Why did she have to be the goof wife, pretend nothing was wrong, and wait for him to come home to a cooked meal and folded laundry? No, she wouldn't be one of those weak, small wives. She wouldn't stand from the side and watch her husband come home every night after fucking the girl of the week. She wouldn't be _that_ wife. If he could cheat, so could she.

Rolling onto her side and propping her head on her elbow, she had watched the man beside her sleep. She had studied the lines on his face, she'd heard his slow, even breaths, and she'd watched his chest rise and sink with every breath he'd let out.

Softly caressing Lou's cheek with her fingers, Catherine remembered how he had woken up a few minutes after her that morning. She smiled as she remembered how he'd freaked out at first as the guilt washed over him. She'd found it adorable. She had spent the morning calming him down and assuring him that it was okay and that he'd done nothing wrong. She'd told him that even though she had been drunk and hadn't been clear in her mind, she didn't regret what they had done and he didn't need to feel bad or guilty.

They had agreed on going their separate ways and never talking about that night. They'd known working together would be awkward, but they were two adults who's hooked up one drunken night and could get past the awkwardness. Or that's, at least, what they thought.

A few days later, when Catherine had gathered dirty clothes for laundry while Eddie was at work, she'd noticed a red stain on the collar on one of his white shirts. Picking it up to get a closer look, her suspicions were confirmed: it was a lipstick stain. That was the last straw.

That night she knocked on Lou's door and when he opened and saw the look on her face, he knew exactly why she was standing on his doorstep. Before he could let out a word, she threw herself at him, her lips crashing onto his.

Since that night, they had been seeing each other at random times. They would go to Lou's place, have mind-blowing sex, and when it was over, Catherine would usually go back home to her husband, who'd probably just finished doing a girl who was twenty years younger than Catherine.

That was Catherine's marriage now. She couldn't say she was happy with it, but it was better than nothing, as long as her husband didn't know anything.

The shrilling sound in the room reminded her of her ringing phone and with a groan she dragged her body off of Lou's and rolled onto her other side. Reaching down to the floor, she grabbed her discarded purse and started fishing for the ringing phone, desperate to stop the annoying sound.

Once the phone was found; she pressed the answer button before pressing it to her ear. "Hello."

"Hey, where are you?" she heard her husband's voice on the other end of the line and straightened up, holding the sheets to her chest. "You didn't come home last night. I was worried sick."

"Yeah, sorry. I stayed at a friend's," she answered quickly, listening to him sigh on the other line.

"Cath, I'm sorry. I promise I'll stop with the cocaine. Just come home."

"You keep saying that, Ed."

"I know, I know," he replied. "It's just hard. But I will, for you. I promise."

She didn't know what to say, so she just sighed instead, causing her husband to get frustrated. At that moment, she felt movement on the bed and turned her head to see Lou opening his eyes and sitting up with a questioning expression. Pressing a finger to her lips to silence him, she diverted her attention back to Eddie.

"Look, Eddie, I gotta go. I'll call you later."

"No, wait," he stopped her just as she was about to hang up. "How about I take you out tonight for dinner? We'll go to that restaurant you like."

She was too busy to answer him right away since Lou's lips were currently pressed against her, causing her to smile in amusement. Pulling back, Lou settled against the headboard and waited patiently for her to finish the conversation.

"Uh… yeah, yeah, sure," she answered quickly. "I'll see you tonight."

"Okay," Eddie replied. "I love you."

There was a moment of silence in which each listened to the other's breaths until Catherine finally said quietly, "Love you, too."

After hanging up and throwing her phone back into her purse, she caught Lou's amused expression. "What?" she questioned with a smile as she straddled his thighs and pressed her lips to his.

"'Love you, too?'" he repeated her statement with a raised eyebrow when they pulled apart.

"He's my husband," she explained. "What was I supposed to say?"

"How about 'I'm unhappy and I want a divorce?'"

She gave him an annoyed look and a sigh in response. "It's not that simple."

"Why not?"

"Can we, please, just not talk about it right now?" she quickly dismissed the dreaded conversation and rushed to change that subject. "Right now we have much more important things to do." Her voice changed into a seductive one as she started rubbing against him, a smile slowly forming on his lips.

"Mmm... yeah?" His hands went to her waist, pulling her closer to his body.

"Mhm…" she hummed with a slight nod before pressing her lips to his and ending the conversation she knew would come again soon.

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**That's it for now. I hope it doesn't take me long to post the next chapter. I've been having a writer's block lately.**

**-Zohar**


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